Buttermilk Biscuits

These biscuits have a light and crumbly texture that some of us find irresistible. You can make thinner, smaller biscuits if you wish, yielding more. Makes a baker’s dozen 2-inch biscuits.

2 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar, if desired
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
6 to 8 (3 to 4 ounces) tablespoons cold lard in small clumps
About ¾ cup buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 450°F.

Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Add the cold lard and rub it in with your fingertips until the texture is smooth. Quickly stir in the buttermilk to make a soft dough.

On a lightly floured board, with cold hands, knead the dough briefly. Roll or pat it out to ½-inch thickness and stamp out rounds with a cutter. Place them apart on a baking sheet. Bake the biscuits in the preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until pale golden brown.

This recipe appeared in the Winter 2013 issue as part of a larger story on Lard.

Elizabeth Gawthrop Riely's articles appeared in many newspapers and magazines. Her cookbook, A Feast of Fruits, was published by Macmillan in 1983. Her dictionary, The Chef's Companion (John Wiley & Sons, 3rd edition), has been in print since 1986. She was editor of The Culinary Times, published by the Schlesinger Library at Radcliffe, from 2000 to 2009. Beth passed away in March 2017.